Kick-Off: Gameweek 36 Fantasy Preview

Awardsss: Gareth Bale is the winner of PFA Player of the Year, PFA Young Player of the Year and Football Writers' Association Footballer of the Year.

Gareth Bale (£10.7m, 12 pts) was all over the headlines after clinching a hat-trick of awards. Astounding. In the European football we saw Bayern completed a 7-0 sweep against Barcelona. The end of an era?

Let's back to our fantasy business anyway with another double gameweek awaiting us...

FEATURED: Manchester United v Chelsea @ Old Trafford
Reigning champions Manchester United will welcome the challenge of Chelsea at the Theater of Dreams.

With nothing else to compete for, the Red Devils will go all out against their new rivals since Roman Abramovich purchased the London club last decade. Robin Van Persie (£13.8m, 8 pts) continues to be the biggest threat and the player of the year of every Manchester United fans. Nonetheless, fantasy managers should take into account of the possibility of "experiments" by Sir Alex Ferguson as he prepares the team for the next season — rotations can possibly harm your fantasy returns from this team.

On the other side, Fernando Torres (£9.3m, - pts) led his side to reach the final of Europa League, and may give United's defence a tough run. Rotations are also a heavy downside here with such compact fixtures for the Blues, but at least Rafa Benitez's side have two games this gameweek to earn fantasy points.

David Luiz (£6.6m, 6 pts) is one good investment to consider, with his defence greatly improved compared to when he was initially at Stamford Bridge and his threatening long range efforts.

There are a lot of uncertainties in this game so let's just stick with a scoring draw.

Prediction: MUN 2-2 CHE

TEAM FOCUS: Manchester City
Sure, Tottenham have better reason to go all out, but City's fixtures are relatively much easier and they need to warm up for their FA Cup final too.

Carlos Tevez (£9.3m, 2 pts) is the obvious pick upfront despite scoring none in the last two games. Yaya Toure (£8.2m, 10 pts) will provide support from the back, and is also a good option for you in this double gameweek.

Defensively it seems rather negative for me against West Brom who have in-form Romelu Lukaku (£6.7m, 15 pts), though Swansea's rather weak offence recently presents the Citizens the chance to clinch a clean sheet.

Prediction: SWA 1-2 MCI, MCI 3-1 WBA

PLAYER FOCUS: Bale
Of course you have to go for Super-Bale, who still has all the reasons to fight for this season. His halo of glories will make his days tougher in front of his opponents, but nonetheless these should not be a problem for him.

GAMEWEEK 36 DREAM TEAM

Robles

Luiz — Dawson — Zabaleta

Bale (C) — Coutinho — Mata — Yaya Toure

Defoe — Tevez (VC) — Lukaku

Subs: Vorm — Walcott — Boyce — Azpilicueta

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Kick-Off: Gameweek 35 Fantasy Preview

Number 20! Robin Van Persie scored a wonderful hat-trick which secured the title for Manchester United.

A big week has passed. I mean really BIG.

• Manchester United secured their 20th top-flight league title. It's their 13th in 21 Premier League seasons. What an astounding achievement.
• Meanwhile, Luis Suarez's (£10.8m, 212 season pts) crave for Branislav Ivanovic's (£6.9m, 130 season pts) meat have earned him a ten-match ban, which he opted not to appeal. Thank you Luis for such a wonderful performance, both in reality and fantasy.
• This effectively means that Robin Van Persie's (£13.8m, 236 season pts) claim on the Golden Boot is almost certain, which his nearest possible contender Gareth Bale (£10.5m, 213 season pts) 6 goals shy from the Dutch's 24.
• On Europe, we saw the downfall of Spanish giants — Barcelona and Real Madrid — with a combined score of 1-8 against the rising Germans — Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund.

FEATURED: Arsenal v Manchester United @ Emirates
Van Persie has proven how correct is his decision to jump ship from London to Manchester, but die-hard Gunners' supporters will not approve his betrayal definitely. And they will put all their hopes on the current crop of Arsenal players to give him the punishment.

Olivier Giroud (£7.6m, -1 pt) will begin his 3-game punishment after a red-card against Fulham so it'll up to either Lukas Podolski (£8.1m, 1 pt) or Theo Walcott (£8.8m, 5 pts) to lead the line. You can't be sure, but the one who step up will definitely try to benefit from that and achieve something.

On the other side, the Red Devils may go complacent after securing the title — unless they are going for Premier League record of 96 points or somehow fears that Van Persie will still possibly lose his almost-Golden Boot. With that taken into account, I am going for a home win — Arsenal need points more than United anyway.

Prediction: ARS 2-1 MUN

TEAM FOCUS: Manchester City
Their second place is for them to lose. Not much to play, but they are the much better team than their opponent, so let's go for them anyway.

Carlos Tevez (£9.1m, 2 pts) is the obvious replacement for Luis Suarez and has played 90 minutes or more in each of his last five Premier League fixtures. It's now two weeks away from FA Cup final and Mancini for sure would want Carlito to shift into his best condition by playing him in an effective way.

David Silva (£9.1m, - pts) and Sergio Aguero (£10.9m) are expected to return, though we will need to guess whether will them start. The duo, together with their current replacements Samir Nasri (£8.0m, 7 pts) and Edin Dzeko (£6.8m, 2 pts), will be quite some risky picks.

Andy Carroll (£8.2m, 2 pts) is in quite some form recently, but I doubt he can bang City's defence this time.

Prediction: MCI 3-0 WHU

PLAYER FOCUS: Bale
Though Wigan are on relegation crisis, I don't see how they are going to contain the almighty Gareth Bale and get their much needed three points. Prepare for some Bale-icious stride.

GAMEWEEK 35 DREAM TEAM

Cech

Baines — Shawcross — Zabaleta

Bale (VC) — Fellaini — Mata — Yaya Toure

Van Persie — Tevez (C) — Sturridge

Subs: Begovic — Sessegnon — Cuellar — Samba

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Kick-Off: Gameweek 34 Fantasy Preview

Meet the nominees for PFA player of the year. From left to right, top before bottom: Gareth Bale, Michael Carrick, Juan Mata, Luis Suarez, Robin Van Persie and Eden Hazard.

Hope that you have gone through a smooth double gameweek. For those who didn't, don't give up as there are still five gameweek to go!

FEATURED: Tottenham v Manchester City @ White Hart Lane
Of course Rafael Benitez's return to Anfield as an opposition manager is a big one, but the battle at White Hart Lane has definitely a better reason not to miss.

Gareth Bale (£10.5m, 200 season pts) is not expected to return as of yet — Andre Villas-Boas simply has to be patient and wait for his full recovery instead of risking the Welsh to preserve Tottenham's chances to finish within top four.

That means Emmanuel Adebayor (£9.0m, - pts) will have to bear the burden of scoring on his shoulder. The Togolese has only 3 league goals so far, he a goal and an assist in his last Premier League game certainly indicated a better him. And playing against his former club, he will definitely be more motivated to score.

As for the visitors, Manchester City have close to zero possibility to defend their title by now, neither do they feel threatened at second with Chelsea trailing them by 7 points. David Silva (£9.2m, - pts) is a slight doubt but is expected to play nonetheless, while Carlos Tevez (£8.7m, 8 pts) is having a great run recently (4 goals in his last 6 games) and will definitely pose some threat to Spurs' defence.

City are at a comfortable second, but I think they have too much class for Bale-less Tottenham.

Prediction: TOT 1-2 MCI

TEAM FOCUS: Manchester United
This could be the coronation day for the Red Devils, and they are definitely ready for that.

Robin Van Persie (£13.7m, 16 pts) has officially ended his scoring drought with 2 goals in his last 2 games. With his return in form, you can confidently pass your captain armband to him and hope for the best.

Shinji Kagawa (£8.0m, 11 pts) could be the provider again after setting up two goals at Upton Park on Wednesday, while Wayne Rooney (£12.1m, 4 pts) will hope to be the star of the pitch instead of transfer headlines.

A clean sheet is very likely at the back too, so you may want to get one of their members.

Prediction: MUN 2-0 AST

PLAYER FOCUS: Michu
The Swans are well rested, and against defensively poor Southampton, it's really Michu's (£8.1m, 173 season pts) opportunity to shine.

GAMEWEEK 34 DREAM TEAM

De Gea

Samba — Turner — Sagna

Kagawa — Walcott — Michu (VC) — Fellaini

Tevez — Van Persie (C) — Remy

Subs: Cesar — Snodgrass — Demel — O'Shea

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Kick-Off: Gameweek 32 Fantasy Preview

Gareth Bale is out!

I believe a big group of fantasy managers have their plans spoiled with the injury of Gareth Bale (£10.9m, 13 pts) a.k.a. the most in-form player in the Premier League. The Welsh should be out at least for the next two gameweeks (Tottenham don't play in Gameweek 33 anyway), so let's see where we can find a replacement for the winger.

FEATURED: Manchester United v Manchester City @ Old Trafford
So the defending champions, who have only mere theoretical possibilities of retaining their title, will visit their arch-rivals, who are 99% certain to clinch their 20th top-flight league title. Certainly won't affect the league standings much, but this should still be a wonderful match-up for the pride of both teams.

The Red Devils' star striker Robin Van Persie (£13.6m, 7 pts) — who now only leads the FPL scoreboard by a mere 1 point — has gone goalless for his last four Premier League games. Certainly not the type of return his investors expect, and he should really break the duck this time to repay his fantasy managers' faith. The good news is of course, the return of Wayne Rooney (£12.0m, - pts) to support the Dutch after suffering from groin injury for England.

On the other side David Silva (£9.2m, 11 pts), while not having the same unstoppable form he had last season, seems to have found his peak as the season ends with two double-digit scores in the last four games. He should continue to pull strings for the team to allow his teammates such as Carlos Tevez (£8.7m, 6 pts) — who is in equally good form with 3 goals in the last 4 games — to finish.

While Manchester United have more than enough cushion to clinch the title already, their early exits in Champions League and FA Cup means they can give out 100% on this game. At Old Trafford, their counterpart should be unable to stop them to speed up their crowning moment.

Prediction: MUN 2-1 MCI

TEAM FOCUS: Liverpool
Anfield should be turned into goals arena as the Reds await the visit by the Hammers.

Liverpool have won four of their last five league fixtures, scoring 15 goals in the process. Luis Suarez (£11.2m, 6 pts) continues to be fantasy managers favourite and with only four points behind the fantasy leader Van Persie, he might as well surpass overtake the Dutch to lead the scoreboard after this game.

Meanwhile, Steven Gerrard (£9.6m, 9 pts) continues to hit his high in years, and is set to play for more minutes than any of his last five seasons this term. An evergreen figure?

Phillippe Coutinho (£6.9m, 5 pts) is the cheaper alternative to Gerrard, with the youngster linking impressively well upfront ever since his arrival. Daniel Sturridge (£7.2m, - pts) could start upfront and score some goals too.

Prediction: LIV 3-1 WHU

PLAYER FOCUS: Michu
Michu (£8.3m, 6 pts), the most impactful Premier League buy of the season, has been pretty quiet recently. But with Norwich as their opposition, it's pretty hopeful for him to score and gain some form for end-season rush isn't it?

GAMEWEEK 32 DREAM TEAM

Begovic

Monreal — Azpilicueta — Enrique

Michu — Gerrard — Cazorla (VC) — Hazard

Suarez (C) — Remy — Lambert

Subs: Cesar — Gervinho — Wilson — Davies

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Kick-Off: Gameweek 30 Fantasy Preview

Can Loic Remy lead QPR to their third consecutive victory?

There are a lot of nice fixtures for you to capitalise this week, so let's get ready for a big fantasy feast!

FEATURED: Everton v Manchester City @ Goodison Park
Everton are still hopeful for a Champions League finish with only five points separating them and fourth-placed Chelsea and a win against Manchester City will definitely boost their odds.

It's all about Marouane Fellaini (£7.6m, - pts) this season for the Toffees, with the Belgian their attacking focal point with 11 league goals and 6 assists already this season. Big and lethal.

Manchester City might have not much to pursue already this season, but their quality is immense and they aren't that safe at second neither. Carlos Tevez (£8.6m, - pts) is the man you should pursue if you want some City's exposure as Sergio Aguero (£10.9m, - pts) is expected to be unfit until end of the month.

I think City will conquer Goodison Park as the Toffees are not really in good form recently.

Prediction: EVE 1-2 MCI

TEAM FOCUS: Manchester United
Is there any better time to captain Robin Van Persie (£13.7m, 192 season pts)? I don't know, but this Saturday seems like one of the best gameweek to do so.

Reading now sit second from the bottom, leading Queens Park Rangers only by goal difference. With Brian McDermott just sacked not long ago, expect some uncertainties in the Royals' tactics.

Shinji Kagawa (£7.9m, - pts) could do some magic again after a hat-trick against Norwich, and a clean sheet is quire likely too.

Prediction: MUN 3-0 RDG

PLAYER FOCUS: Remy
It's cheating to write on Luis Suarez (£11.1m, 190 season pts) or Gareth Bale (£10.8m, 185 season pts) here — both are having delicious fixtures this weekend — so let's go for Loic Remy (£5.9m, 8 pts) instead, the critical player in Harry Redknapp's operation salvation.

Remy now started four league games out of a possible seven for QPR, and has then scored 3 goals already for the side. Thanks to his two goals in the last two games the Rs have gotten their first consecutive victories of the season, and another win will more than likely bring them away from the last position in the league.

Aston Villa isn't a very tough opposition, so Remy could really strike it three-in-a-row and possibly help QPR to get 9 points out of 9 as well, sending them to cloud nine.

GAMEWEEK 30 DREAM TEAM

Mignolet

Vertonghen — Azpilicueta — Evra

 Bale (VC) — Kagawa — Cazorla — Mata

Suarez — Van Persie (C) — Remy

Subs: Begovic — Coutinho — Cameron — Cuellar

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Kick-Off: Gameweek 27 Fantasy Preview

Jack Wilshere burst into tears after a heavy defeat to Bayern Munich at Emirates Stadium.

Mixed fortunes for Premier League teams at Europe as Liverpool got knocked out of Europa League while Arsenal got dented heavily at home by Bayern Munich. Let's see how they reach as Premier League moves on to gameweek 27. Kindly take note that Liverpool and Swansea have pre-played their fixture on gameweek 26 in anticipation of League Cup final for the Swans. They will play no games for this gameweek.

FEATURED: Manchester City v Chelsea @ Etihad
It's a battle for runner-up as Chelsea travel to Manchester City with four-point gap between them.

Eden Hazard (£9.3m, 13 pts) brought the Blues through to the round of 16 of Europa League with a dramatic late goal against Sparta Prague. He had scored in both of his last two games and could be the main threat again to the opposition apart from Juan Mata (£10.1m, 1 pt) — the Blues' chief in offence.

On the other side, City finally got a win after more than a half-month with Carlos Tevez (£8.7m, - pts) starting ahead of Edin Dzeko (£7.5m, 7 pts) this time. Still looks tough to read through Mancini's brain despite the departure of Mario Balotelli.

So it leaves Sergio Aguero (£10.9m, 2 pts) as the most rotation-free man up front, though his price can hardly be justified with his mediocre performance this season. This is the same as well to David Silva (£9.3m, 2 pts) and Yaya Toure (£7.7m, 1 pt) — two big fantasy jewels of last season.

Close match, but I think City have the stamina advantage to take this down.

Prediction: MCI 2-1 CHE

TEAM FOCUS: Arsenal
This might be the last easy game for the Gunners in awhile, so let's enjoy.

Theo Walcott (£9.5m, 7 pts) are the obvious picks as usual, while Olivier Giroud (£8.0m, 2 pts) and Santi Cazorla (£9.3m, 8 pts) are capable to do some damage too if you are looking for goals.

If they can hold off Christian Benteke (£6.9m, 8 pts) then I can see a third consecutive clean sheet coming.

Prediction: ARS 3-1 AST

PLAYER FOCUS: Van Persie
Harry Redknapp simply doesn't look godly enough to save QPR from Robin Van Persie's (£14.0m, 12 pts) desolation... The Red Devils won't lose such a golden chance to further cement their leading position will they?

GAMEWEEK 27 DREAM TEAM

Schwarzer

Baines — Jenkinson — Rafael

 Walcott (VC) — Sissoko — Fellaini — Bale — Nani

Van Persie (C) — Giroud

Subs: Federici — Le Fondre — Zabaleta — Harte

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Kick-Off: Gameweek 25 Fantasy Preview

Are you kidding me? Queens Park Rangers bought defender Christopher Samba for a club record of £12.5m. I do not mean to humiliate Samba, but this is a freaking ridiculous price.

The winter transfer window ended with Queens Park Rangers' unbelievable £12.5m record deal for experienced ex-Premier League defender Christopher Samba. QPR certainly look more and more desperate in their struggling journey to survive at the Premier League.

Other notable transfers include Nacho Monreal's arrival at the Emirates Stadium as well as Danny Graham's switch to Stadium of Light. Let's just see how these new crop of players fare with their new clubs.

GAMEWEEK 24 HIGHLIGHTS

• Manchester United re-extended their lead to 7 points after a narrow victory over Southampton. Wayne Rooney (£11.8m, 13 pts) was the hero, having scored both goals for United.
• Manchester City meanwhile were held goalless at Loftus Road as QPR collected another famous point to keep their survival hopes alive.
• Luis Suarez (£10.5m, 6 pts) and Jordan Henderson (£5.3m, 12 pts) combined to give Liverpool a two-goal lead at the Emirates but in-form Theo Walcott (£9.5m, 8 pts) and Olivier Giroud (£7.9m, 11 pts) helped to salvage a point for Arsenal.

GAMEWEEK 24 TOP SCORERS

1. Leighton Baines (£7.5m, 17 pts): A couple of goals from the Toffees' defender made it 39 points from his last 4 games. Fixtures are still pretty favourable for him in the next 3 games.
2. Juan Mata (£10.1m, 14 pts): His heroics wasn't enough to take 3 points for Chelsea. Proceed with caution as the lad is doubtful against Newcastle with his ankle injury.
3. James McArthur (£5.4, 13 pts): He was involved in both goals of Wigan. Never look to be a fantasy prospect anyway.
4. Wayne Rooney (£11.8m, 13 pts): Back on fire but I am still skeptical of his playing minutes as well as influence when compared to Robin Van Persie (£14.1m, 2 pts).
5. Jordan Henderson  (£5.3m, 12 pts): 22 points from the last 2 games as the young midfielder is on the way to leave the "flop" tag behind him.

FEATURED: Manchester City v Liverpool @ Etihad
Another tough game for Liverpool as they visit to Etihad in their tough quest for a top four finish.

City drew against QPR last week and will look to not repeat such embarrassment against the Reds. Mario Balotelli has left to AC Milan for good and helps to increase the playing minutes of Sergio Aguero (£10.9m, 2 pts), Carlos Tevez (£8.9m, 2 pts) and Edin Dzeko (£7.5m, 1 pt). Not sure which two of them will start up front though, with David Silva (£9.5m, 3 pts) for sure will provide the needed support for them.

Jordan Henderson is the hot man for the Reds but the arrival of Phillipe Coutinho (£6.5m) should restrict his playing minutes sooner rather than later. The more reliable and less susceptible to rotation player is of course Luis Suarez (£10.5m, 6 pts) who can play and perform equally well at any position at the front four.

It's going to be a tough match, but I guess Vincent Kompany's (£7.1m, - pts) will prove to be a hard time for Roberto Mancini's side.

Prediction: MCI 1-1 LIV

TEAM FOCUS: Tottenham
Tottenham have not won in their last three Premier League fixtures, and that's too long.

West Brom are even worst with their 5 game victory-less streak, and that presents a big chance for Gareth Bale (£9.8m, 8 pts), Jermaine Defoe (£8.2m, 5 pts) and Aaron Lennon (£7.3m, 2 pts) to shine. New arrival Lewis Holtby (£7.5m) could get his time too after debuting against Norwich at Carrow Road earlier this week.

Prediction: WBA 1-3 TOT

PLAYER FOCUS: Giroud
It's hard to overlook Olivier Giroud (£7.9m, 11 pts) as he bursts into incredible form after a miserable first half of the season. Against Stoke, he will be the towering presence to pierce through the high physical defence of Tony Pulis' team.

GAMEWEEK 25 DREAM TEAM

Mignolet

Samba — Evra — Baines

 Mata — Bale (VC) — Fellaini — Walcott

Van Persie (C) — Fletcher — Giroud

Subs: Cesar — Henderson —  Bertrand — Bramble

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Kick-Off: Gameweek 15 Fantasy Preview

Harry Redknapp got his first point as a QPR manager on his first game in charge.

No time for break as gameweek 15 will begin shortly! Let's start!

GAMEWEEK 14 HIGHLIGHTS

• Premier League celebrates its 250 millionth spectators this gameweek (link to Ryan Giggs' interview) since its establishment 20 years ago. What a great milestone.
• Both Manchester clubs won as they sit firmly on the top 2 position.
• Chelsea returned to third place despite only earning only a point against Fulham thanks to Swansea who ended West Brom's winning streak.
• Gareth Bale (£9.7m, 10 pts) was involved in all three goals at White Hart Lane as Tottenham won Liverpool 2-1.
• Points were shared at Goodison Park as both Everton and Arsenal went one down in league standings.

GAMEWEEK 14 TOP SCORERS

1. Wayne Routledge (£5.4m, 15 pts): Certainly a very volatile players, with 6 three-points-or-less gameweeks sandwiched in between 2 double digit gameweeks. Proceed with caution is my advice.
2. Cameron Jerome (£5.0m, 11 pts): A surprising performance from the sub. Doesn't look ownable yet with such limited playing time.
3. Gareth Bale (£9.7m, 10 pts): One of the most in form midfielder at the moment, though notably more expensive than the highest scoring fantasy midfielder at the moment...
4. Marouane Fellaini (£7.6m, 10 pts): ... and you know who he is. His fifth double digit gameweek already. What a fantastic season for him.
5. Gareth Barry (£5.3m, 10 pts): Contributed both assists in City's win over Wigan. His gameweek history doesn't look like he will produce a lot more though.
6. Robert Snodgrass (£5.8m, 10 pts): Don't look worthy with his high price tag among the players from mid-bottom-table clubs.

FEATURED: Manchester City v Everton @ Etihad
Fierce battle continues for Everton as they travel to Manchester in an attempt to stop the duopoly of the Manchesters.

Fellaini continues to be the man in form for the Toffees after scoring his seventh goal of the season against Arsenal yesterday. The Belgian is expected to play pivotal part again in the game at Etihad.

Carlos Tevez (£9.5m, - pts) was given a driving ban by Lancaster magistrates but that shouldn't stop him from travelling to City's home stadium and play for the team. He should really start after featuring only 22 minutes in the past 2 gameweeks.

An intense battle is anticipated, but City are in a very good form to lose now.

Prediction: MCI 2-0 EVE

TEAM FOCUS: Manchester United
The Red Devils are struggling to win comfortably recently, but against Reading it should be easier.

Robin Van Persie (£13.7m, 9 pts) continues to be the man to trust as he scored the only goal against West Ham to help United to stay at the summit. But let's not underestimate the impact Wayne Rooney (£11.7m, 2 pts) and Javier Hernandez (£7.6m, 2 pts) can bring too.

Should be a comfortable win.

Prediction: RDG 1-3 MUN

PLAYER FOCUS: Suarez
Southampton have only kept one clean sheet this season, so it is really one of the best opportunity for Luis Suarez (£10.4m, 2 pts) to score a couple of goals and extend his advantage in the pursuit of Golden Boot.

GAMEWEEK 15 DREAM TEAM

Cesar

Enrique — Ivanovic — Rafael — Garrido

 Silva — Walcott — Bale

Suarez (C) — Van Persie (VC) — Ba

Subs: Gazzaniga — Pablo Hernandez —  Jordi Gomez — Nelsen 

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Kick-Off: Gameweek 14 Fantasy Preview

"I rule!"

It'll be a short one, as I'm short of time in weekdays. So let's begin!

GAMEWEEK 13 HIGHLIGHTS

• West Brom went third in the league standings after a 4-2 away win against Sunderland. Not showy, but definitely effective in delivering results.
• The Manchesters swapped places again as City failed to win at Stamford Bridge.
• After a strong start, Everton now only got 1 victory in their last 5 league games after being frustrated at home by Norwich.
• 8 teams on clean sheet this gameweek, possibly hinting the beginning of the "winter effect" in the Premier League. You may want to shift some budget to defence to capitalise on the usually weaker offence during the next one to two months.

GAMEWEEK 13 TOP SCORERS

1. Jordi Gomez (£5.2m, 20 pts): Unbelievable hat-trick. Only scored 6 fantasy points prior to this, and thus doesn't seem to be a good choice.
2. Stephane Sessegnon (£7.3m, 13 pts): He now scored 20 points in his last 2 games. He has shown us what he is capable last season, and this might just be the indicator of better things to come.
3. Jermaine Defoe (£7.8m, 12 pts): As good as usual this season, which will continue to frustrate Emmanuel Adebayor's (£9.0m, - pts) chances at this team.
4. Gaston Ramirez (£6.0m, 12 pts): It might took too long for the most expensive signing of Southampton of all time to deliver his value, but to be late it's better than to not come at all.
5. Adam Lallana (£6.1m, 11 pts): Have been pretty consistent and is considered one of the best mid-budget midfielder around.
6. Jonny Evans (£5.8m, 11 pts): Exposed to a lot of bench time and so does not seem to be a good pick yet.

FEATURED: Everton v Arsenal @ Goodison Park
Everton will like to escape their point dropping frustration as Arsenal pay a visit to Goodison Park in a head-to-head battle for fifth.

Marouane Fellaini (£7.6m, - pts) will return from suspension and provide the much needed strength to dominate the Gunners. Can the quartet of Arsenal — Santi Cazorla (£9.5m, 3 pts), Lukas Podolski (£8.2m, 2 pts), Olivier Giroud (£8.4m, 2 pts) and Theo Walcott (£8.7m, - pts) — break the duck this time?

Prediction: EVE 2-1 ARS

TEAM FOCUS: Manchester City
Yes, Wigan have just recorded a sensational victory last Saturday, but I don't think City are ready to slip here when they are trailing against Manchester United already. Carlos Tevez (£9.5m, 1 pt) and Sergio Aguero (£11.0m, 2 pts) are as usual the best pick.

Prediction: WIG 0-3 MCI

PLAYER FOCUS: Sessegnon
It might take some time for Queens Park Rangers to recover from their misery, so Sessegnon may be able to capitalise on that and make it three in a row (3 goals in 3 games).

GAMEWEEK 14 DREAM TEAM

Begovic

Kompany — Shawcross — Rafael

Sessegnon (VC) — Fellaini — Lallana — Bale

Tevez (C) — Van Persie — Suarez

Subs: Gazzaniga — Adam —  Clark — Garrido

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Saturday Screamers: Five Star City

The golden trinity (Silva, Aguero and Tevez) led City to a 5-0 win.

Quite a number of shocking results including Chelsea's and Manchester United's shock defeats which helped Manchester City climb to the summit. Here are some highlights:

• An outrageous performance by Carlos Tevez (£9.4m, 16 pts) as his 2 goals and 2 assists opened the door to a 5-0 victory over Aston Villa.
• David Silva (£9.3m, 14 pts) and Sergio Aguero (£11.0m, 10 pts) were also having a great game as the three of them were involved in all the 5 goals.
• Meanwhile at Anfield, Luis Suarez (£10.2m, 10 pts) became the first player who hit the 10 goal milestone this season as his brace helped Liverpool to claim 3 points and move them up in the league standings.
• Raheem Sterling (£5.4m, 9 pts) and Jose Enrique (£5.7m, 15 pts) were both influential apart from Suarez as the Reds seem to find their best trinity upfront.
• At Emirates, Emmanuel Adebayor (£9.0m, 2 pts) scored an early opener but was fouled out in just 17 minutes of action as Tottenham suffered the consequences and conceded 5 goals from Arsenal.
• The Gunners attacking quartet — Theo Walcott (£8.7m, 10 pts), Santi Cazorla (£9.4m, 10 pts), Lukas Podolski (£8.2m, 8 pts) and Olivier Giroud (£8.4m, 6 pts) — have all did well in their demolition over their derby rivals, which really give headaches to fantasy managers on who to pick.
• Norwich created another unbelievable victory since their 1-0 victory over Arsenal last month as Anthony Pilkington's (£5.7m, 8 pts) only goal of the game pulled Manchester United off the league leading position.
• But Chelsea failed to take advantage of United's slip as they lost earlier to West Brom, with Juan Mata (£9.6m, 1 pt) only featured as a sub. Shane Long (£6.1m, 9 pts) and Peter Odemwingie (£6.9m, 6 pts) were the heroes of the victory.
• West Brom's victory also meant that they are now fourth on the league, overtaking Everton. The Toffees were unable to take any points away from Madejski Stadium as Adam Le Fondre (£4.8m, 10 pts) finally scored again since the opening day, and this time he scored twice.
• Queens Park Rangers are really on high pressure now as a lost to Southampton means that they remain with only 4 points after 12 games. Jason Puncheon (£4.4m, 10 pts) made it his day with a goal and an assist.
• At Sports Direct Arena, Demba Ba (£8.3m, 6 pts) returned to scoring form but it was too late to recover from Michu's (£7.3m, 8 pts) and Jonathan de Guzman's (£5.7m, 7 pts) earlier goals as Newcastle now lost 2 consecutive home league games.

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Kick-Off: Gameweek 10 Fantasy Preview

Theo Walcott was the main hero in Arsenal's 7-5 victory over Reading.

A crazy League Cup round as we saw 2 astonishing games played which include Arsenal's unbelievable 4 goal comeback against Reading and Chelsea's extra-time revenge against Manchester United in a 9-goal-thriller. Absolute stunners but let's return to Premier League as we prepare for gameweek 10 of FPL:

GAMEWEEK 9 TOP SCORERS

1. Robin Van Persie (£13.4m, 12 pts): Second consecutive double-digit gameweek score now for the Dutch forward. Simply one class above of the rest of the Premier League forwards.
2. Bryan Ruiz (£5.8m, 11 pts): He said that he can fill the void left by Mousa Dembele (£6.1m, - pts) and Clint Dempsey (£9.2m, 9 pts). Quite good so far.
3. Mikel Arteta (£7.7m 11 pts): First double-digit gameweek for the Spaniard this season. Playing in such a deep position, he doesn't look likely to carry forward his scoring momentum.
4. Michael Turner (£4.2m, 11 pts): His last gameweek's score has made him more than double his season's score. Definitely not a man to hold until Norwich find some good defence at the back.
5. Gareth Bale (£9.6m, 10 pts): 12 bonus points in the last 5 games he had played. A season-long pick for me.

FEATURED: Manchester United v Arsenal @ Old Trafford
Premier League continues to get hot this week with Manchester United hosting Arsenal at Old Trafford.

The Red Devils currently sit second on the league after a controversial victory over Chelsea last week. Nonetheless, they fumbled in Capital One Cup tie against the same team in a dramatic match-up.

Robin Van Persie will play for the first time against his old club since his transfer saga, but he won't be kind to Arsene Wenger for sure and will continue be the main goal threat for Manchester United, with Wayne Rooney (£11.8m, 1 pt) continue to provide world class support to last season's Golden Boot winner.

Shinji Kagawa (£8.1m, -  pts ) is still a few weeks away from recovery while Chris Smalling (£5.3m, - pts) could be back to boost Sir Alex Ferguson's options at the back for this important tie.

On the other side, the Gunners have been pretty quiet in front of goal but that ended on League Cup tie against Reading, where they scored 7 goals. Santi Cazorla (£9.5m, 3 pts) and Lukas Podolski (£9.5m, 2 pts) continued to be the best bets at Arsenal, while Jack Wilshere (£6.4m, 3 pts) could be handed another league start again after starting last weekend against Queens Park Rangers. Not so sure about his fantasy value though.

Should be a pretty open play, with the Red Devils enjoying their home advantage and send Arsenal back home with a defeat. Don't expect another 8-2 though.

Prediction: MUN 3-1 ARS

TEAM FOCUS: Tottenham Hotspur
They will play at White Hart Lane against Wigan so you could do much worse than getting Tottenham's players and captain their stars.

Gareth Bale (£9.7m, 10 pts) is the obvious captain pick for this week with his explosive speed the main weapon to break the Latics' defence. Clint Dempsey (£9.2m, 9 pts) is another man you can consider as his starting place is now for him to lose after some consistent run of form.

Upfront Jermaine Defoe (£8.0m, 5 pts) should continue to be Andre Villas-Boas' trusted choice, though Emmanuel Adebayor (£9.0m, - pts) could spoil the party as he recovers from illness.

A fair chance to grab a clean sheet too, with Steven Caulker (£4.8m, 2 pts) providing cheap access to Tottenham's backline. He is in legal troubles though, so be cautious.

Prediction: TOT 3-0 WIG

PLAYER FOCUS: Tevez
Manchester City will travel to Boleyn Ground this week. They will have no League Cup fixtures after being eliminated on late September, so Carlos Tevez (£9.5m, 9 pts) will be full of stamina to produce some nice results.

Shane Long (£6.1m, 1 pt) is struggling to shrug off injury problems, so Romelu Lukaku (£6.4m, 9 pts) could start again and get some good scores against Southampton.

GAMEWEEK 10 DREAM TEAM

Hart

O'Shea — Caulker — Ivanovic

Gerrard — Hoilett — Mata — Bale (C)

Tevez (VC) —  Fletcher — Defoe

Subs: Guzan — McAnuff —  G. Cameron — Wisdom

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Sunday Aftermath: Howard Webb's School of Referees

Welcome our next graduate from Howard Webb's academy.

I am simply amused with Premier League's referee standard as Manchester United kept benefiting from such ridiculous officiating. Here are some highlights on last weekend's game:

• Robin Van Persie (£13.4m, 12 pts) was undoubtedly the man of the match (barring the ref) as he was directly involved in 2 of Manchester United's goals. He definitely is showing some performance that matches his price tag.
• On the other side Juan Mata (£9.3m, 9 pts) continued his fabulous performance with a brilliantly curled free-kick goal. Just 3 points between him and Eden Hazard (£10.3m, 5 pts) now, as fantasy managers are more and more tempted to switch to the former and use the extra sterling elsewhere.
• At Goodison Park Luis Suarez (£9.7m, 8 pts) almost embarrassed David Moyes — who accused him as a diver — as he scored one (and another disallowed but legitimate goal) and created Leighton Baines' (£7.5m, 4 pts) own goal in Liverpool's 2-2 draw with their Merseyside rivals. Surprisingly though he did not get any bonus points.
• So Gareth Bale (£9.7m, 10 pts) did dedicate a goal for his newborn daughter as Tottenham claimed 3 points at St. Mary's Stadium. Clint Dempsey (£9.2m, 9 pts) was the other goalscorer as he seemed to pin down a starting spot in Andre Villas-Boas' squad already.
• Demba Ba (£8.4m, 8 pts) and Papiss Cisse (£8.9m, 6 pts) both scored a goal in Newcastle's victory over West Bromwich Albion, but it was Romelu Lukaku (£6.4m, 9 pts) who claimed 3 bonus points despite losing.
• The buy call on Carlos Tevez (£9.4m, 9 pts) is expected to back on rise again as the Argentinian continued to perform consistently and scored the only goal for Manchester City in their victory against Swansea.
• Bryan Ruiz (£5.8m, 11 pts) starred for Fulham in their exhilarating 3-3 draw against Reading, with fantasy hotcake Dimitar Berbatov (£7.1m, 6 pts) scoring a goal too in the process.
• Arsenal continue to struggle in getting goals, though at least this time Mikel Arteta (£7.7m, 11 pts) scored one for the Gunners and secured 3 points for them.
• Christian Benteke (£6.5m, 7 pts) started ahead of Darren Bent (£8.0m, 1 pt) for Aston Villa and did not disappoint as he recorded one goal for the home side in their draw against Norwich City.
• It's 3 clean sheets in 4 games for Stoke City as they played a goalless draw with Sunderland. The upcoming fixtures look good too, so you should really take a look at the Potters' defence.
• None of the usual fantasy faces scored in Wigan's 2-1 victory over West Ham United, which was disappointing and boring.

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Sundat Aftermath: What's the MATA?

Juan Mata is responding after Eden Hazard's marvel earlier this season.

Interesting Saturday fixtures as we saw Chelsea bagging-in 3 points from Emirates Stadium while Tottenham Hotspur got their first win at Old Trafford since 1989. Here are some notes:

• Juan Mata (£8.8m, 13 pts) returned in style. 1 goal + 1 assist + 3 bonus points made the Spaniard one of the top scorers of the week in Chelsea's victory over Arsenal. With Eden Hazard (£10.3m, 2 pts) totally out of form, fantasy managers may get tempted to switch to Mata and use the extra money elsewhere.
• And just when people are jumping on the sell bandwagon of Fernando Torres (£9.9m, 11 pts), the striker came back with a tough goal and an assist. He is the only available forward that Chelsea have currently, so he should still give you at least some consistent returns, if not spectacular.
• At the back of the Blues defence Petr Cech (£6.6m, 3 pts) had a wonderful performance and is definitely the only luxury-line keeper I would recommend at the moment.
• On the other side, Yao Gervinho (£7.4m, 8 pts) scored another goal and seems to secure one of the starting position at the moment with his fine form.
• Laurent Koscielny (£5.4m, 1 pt) on the other hand was disastrous at the back and was the main culprit for the Gunners' home defeat.
• At Old Trafford, Gareth Bale (£9.3m, 16 pts) was involved in all the 3 goals as Tottenham won 3-2 against Manchester United.
• Jan Vertonghen (£6.4m, 9 pts) scored a beautiful opener for Spurs, while Clint Dempsey (£9.2m, 7 pts) wasted no time to show his skills by tapping in the third goal of his side.
• Wayne Rooney (£11.7m, 4 pts) made an influential return for the Red Devils, but the defence was really too calamitous for them to earn a victory. They have at least 1 legitimate penalty claim denied though.
• A tough game for Manchester City but they eventually overcame it with a comeback victory at Craven's Cottage. Carlos Tevez (£9.8m, 4 pts) continued to be under-productive this time, but nonetheless got 2 bonus points for his performance.
• Meanwhile, captain Vincent Kompany (£7.4m, 1 pt) struggled a lot during that game as City still fail to capture their first clean sheet.
• 7 goals were scored at Carrow Road as it has become Luis Suarez's (£9.4m, 20 pts) most favourite ground, as he completed 2 hat-tricks in as many games there. Superb one-man show.
• Another man on fire for Liverpool was Nuri Sahin (£6.7m, 15 pts), who seems to click into Liverpool system already.
• Interestingly the Reds' young revolution are beginning to take shape with Raheem Sterling (£4.7m, 17 years old), Andre Wisdom (£4.5m, 19 years old) and Fernandez Saez (£5.0m, 18 years old) all on the starting line-up against Norwich.
• 5 goals in 3 games for Demba Ba (£8.1m, 13 pts) as Newcastle took 1 point away from Madejski Stadium. What an incredible form for the Senegalese forward.
• Also scoring a brace on Saturday were Everton's Nikica Jelavic (£8.4m, 16 pts) and Stoke City's Peter Crouch (£6.6m, 13 pts) in their respective wins over Southampton and Swansea.
• Another man on fire was Steven Fletcher (£7.4m, 8 pts) as he scored all of Sunderland's Premier League goals since his arrival. A cautious trend for Martin O'Neill, but that is really a happy signal for Fletcher's fantasy managers.
• Shane Long (£6.0m, 9 pts) scored a fine opener for West Brom only to be equalised by Darren Bent (£8.2m, 5 pts) from the bench as points were shared at Villa Park.

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Sunday Aftermath: Arsenal's Anfield Annihilation

Santi Cazorla and Lukas Podolski combined to score both of Arsenal's goals against Liverpool.

Great performance by Arsenal at Anfield as we saw Liverpool stuck deep in bottom part of the table. Here are some highlights:

• Lukas Podolski (£8.4m, 12 pts) and Santi Cazorla (£9.0m, 13 pts) combined for the victory at Anfield. Superb teamwork between the duo and you can expect them to continue to lead the club in offence.
• Meanwhile, Olivier Giroud (£8.9m, 2 pts) continues to struggle, failing to deliver any obvious threat to Liverpool's fragile defence.
• Carl Jenkinson (£4.7m, 6 pts) continued his class act, and was able to contain Raheem Sterling (£4.5, 2 pts) well. Sterling started and played exceptionally well again, and is on the way to become the best budget fantasy midfielder around.
• For one moment I thought Sterling and Joe Allen (£5.4m, 2 pts) are the Suarez and Gerrard of Liverpool. Allen was indeed the only other Liverpool player who played well, with exceptional pass completion percentage. He played too deep to be valuable fantasy wise.
• The rest of the Liverpool players are on a long road to adapt to tiki-taka play as of the moment, so stay away from them until the situation changes.
• At St. Mary Stadium, we saw Manchester United came back from a big scare, with Robin Van Persie (£13.3m, 15 pts) scored Premier League's first hat-trick this season. You have better take him in sooner rather than later as a pain reduction strategy.
• Anders Lindegaard (£5.4m, 1 pt) started ahead of David de Gea (£6.0m) this time, which effectively means that goalkeeper rotation is still pretty much happening at Manchester United. Stay away from the duo.
• As for Southampton, Rickie Lambert (£6.0m, 9 pts) was the man again as he scores against Manchester clubs since 2012. The man to pick from the Saints, though Gaston Ramirez could change the situation.
• On the other venue, Aston Villa snatched their first league point this season with Ciaran Clark (£4.4m, 11 pts) scored the only goal for away team. Hatem Ben Arfa (£7.7m, 9 pts) scored for the other side.
• On late Saturday game, we saw Carlos Tevez (£9.7m, 15 pts) on his way to become the fantasy most wanted player, as he participated in all 3 goals that City scored against Queens Park Rangers.
• Yaya Toure (£8.1m, 9 pts) also scored once again as he continues to prove that he is more valuable than David Silva (£9.9m, 2pts).

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Kick-Off: Gameweek 3 Fantasy Preview

Can Carlos Tevez continue to fire?

It was Chelsea and Swansea players who bossed the gameweek again with Hazard, Torres, Rangel and Michu all scoring double digit scores. Interestingly though, fantasy managers continue to jump into Hazard and Torres' bandwagon, despite Chelsea will take no part in gameweek 3 due to European Super Cup fixture against Athletico Madrid. Will the price rises worth more than the points sacrificed? Time will tell.

Do take note that Reading will play no part in gameweek 3 as well. My advice: plan your transfer wisely.

GAMEWEEK 2 TOP SCORERS

1. Angel Rangel (£5.1m, 14 pts): Scored a rather lucky goal and secured yet another clean sheet. Not bad to own though I believe Ashley Williams (£5.0m) will be a better pick in long run with his tendency to collect higher scores in EA Sports PPI than his defensive teammates (which means higher chances to claim bonuses).
2. Eden Hazard (£9.9m, 13 pts): Recorded his sixth assist and first league goal. This lad simply dominates and is on his way to become the next C. Ronaldo — the automatic fantasy captain — in FPL.
3. Carlos Tevez (£9.6m, 12 pts): Continued to dominate in Sergio Aguero's absence. A wonderful pick as I mentioned earlier this week.
4. Fernando Torres (£10.1m, 11 pts): Hazard simply made him alive. Great great stuff from El Nino.
5. Benoit Assou-Ekkoto (£6.5m, 11 pts): Pretty good offensively, but I still cannot trust Andre Villas-Boas yet especially in defence.

TRANSFER UPDATES

• Kevin Mirallas (Olympiakos to Everton): Had a dream debut for Everton against Leyton Orient in Capital One Cup fixture. Worth scouting with his price of £7.5m.
• Cesar Azpilicueta (Marseille to Chelsea): Could challenge Branislav Ivanovic's (£6.7m) position as right-back. Priced £6.0m.
• Nuri Sahin (Real Madrid to Liverpool): Great addition for Liverpool, though it remains unknown how effective he will be.
• Jose Bosingwa (Chelsea to QPR): Available at £5.0m, he will need to deliver offensively to compensate for QPR's fragility in defence.
• Julio Cesar (Inter Milan to QPR): Another ambitious signing. Perhaps he can give more clean sheets to QPR.
• Adam Johnson (Manchester City to Sunderland): He will get good playing minutes to show his fantasy effectiveness. Good fantasy price at £7.0m.
• Ki Sung-Yueng (Celtic to Swansea): Second Asian to join Premier League this season. Hopefully his footwork is as handsome as his k-pop face.

FEATURED: Liverpool v Arsenal @ Anfield
I was wrong last week about Liverpool's chance against Manchester City. They played pretty well offensively, only to be pulled down by their defensive errors. This week they will continue to play at home against Arsenal, who are both yet to score and concede any goals this season.

Nuri Sahin is still not listed in FPL — until we know his price only can we determine his value. He is good in long pass though. Luis Suarez (£9.5m) and Steven Gerrard (£9.5m) continue to be Liverpool's main fantasy force, though their value can only be justified if Brendan Rodgers' tiki-taka starts to flourish.

As for Arsenal, their defence are reaping a lot of points for fantasy managers. Thomas Vermaelen (£7.0m) is the usual luxurious pick to own, while Carl Jenkinson (£4.6m) has provided a super value alternative to fantasy managers. Both are good picks.

While in offence, Olivier Giroud (£8.9m), Lukas Podolski (£8.4m) and Santi Cazorla (£9.0m) should be able to take advantage of the Reds' porous defence, though I believe Liverpool should also make Arsenal concede with home advantage.

Prediction: LIV 1-1 ARS

TEAM FOCUS: Manchester City and Manchester United
Both clubs in Manchester have great fixtures this week, but let's talk about City who will play at home first. Against Queens Park Rangers who are notoriously poor on defence, they have all the chance to score. You can do much worse than getting Carlos Tevez (£9.5m), David Silva (£9.9m) and Yaya Toure (£8.0m) and play them.

Meanwhile, Manchester United will travel to St. Mary's Stadium in their attempt to take 3 points from Southampton. Robin Van Persie (£13.2m) and Shinji Kagawa (£8.6m) are two obvious picks given Wayne Rooney's (£11.9m) injury which will ruled him out for 8 weeks. Not so hype on their defenders though, given their shaky performance against Fulham.

Prediction: MCI 3-0 QPR, MUN 3-1 SOU

PLAYER FOCUS: Adebayor, Ba, Cisse and Michu
Tottenham are going to face Norwich at home this week, so one would expect their attacking pack to shine. I like the prospect of Emmanuel Adebayor (£9.6m) more though, as Rafael Van der Vaart (£8.9m) and Gylfi Sigurdsson's (£8.9m) roles are still relatively unknown in Andre Villas-Boas tactics and Gareth Bale (£9.5m) is struggling to find his form.

Newcastle will deal with Aston Villa who struggle under Paul Lambert's reign, so one would expect the front duo — Demba Ba (£7.7m) and Papiss Cisse (£9.5m) — to contribute fantasy points. Hatem Ben Arfa (£7.6m) should also perform.

Michu (£7.1m) continues to be my weekly pick meanwhile, until his performance suggests otherwise.

STATUS UPDATES

• Wojciech Szcznesny (£5.5m): Unknown (75% playing).
• John Terry (£6.9m): Muscle injury (75% playing).
• Rio Ferdinand (£5.9m): Groin injury (50% playing).
• John Arne Risse (£5.5m): Knock (75% playing).
• Younes Kaboul (£5.4m): Knee injury (unknown return date).
• Lucas Leiva (£4.9m): Thigh injury (unknown return date).

GAMEWEEK 3 DREAM TEAM

Hart

Rafael — Williams — Coloccini

Michu — Kagawa — Ben Arfa — Yaya Toure

Adebayor — Van Persie (VC) — Tevez (C)

Subs: Al-Habsi — Hangeland — Kacaniklic — Figueroa

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Kick-Off: Gameweek 2 Fantasy Preview

Eden Hazard leading the league with 5 assists.

A phenomenal double gameweek saw Chelsea players giving supreme returns, especially from Branislav Ivanovic (24 pts) and new boy Eden Hazard (21 pts). Those who pick Juan Mata over the Belgian would certainly felt heartbroken. But let's move on, as we still have 37 gameweeks to go. Still lots of chance to overtake your rivals!

GAMEWEEK 1 TOP SCORERS

1. Branislav Ivanovic (£6.6m, 24 pts): Joint league top scorer with 2 goals. Exceptional for a defender.
2. Eden Hazard (£9.6m, 21 pts): 5 assists already with only 2 Premier League appearances. Too good for a new boy.
3. Michu (£6.8m, 18 pts): Top performer so single gameweek players. If his shot on bar went in instead he would hit the 20-point mark as well.
4. Mladen Petric (£6.1m, 16 pts): Carried forward his pre-season form successfully and scored some great goals.
5. Nathan Dyer (£5.6m, 16 pts): Still the budget player that I like. Opening his season with 2 goals.
6. Frank Lampard (£9.0m, 16 pts): Both of his goals this gameweek were from the spot, but still he has shown that he still has fantasy value.

TRANSFER UPDATES

• Emmanuel Adebayor (Man City to Tottenham): Great move on the paper. The forward has achieved great success with the same club last season and is expected to continue such momentum.
• Louis Saha (Free agent to Sunderland): Finally a veteran forward for the Black Cats. Has good potential with the price of only £5.5m, provided that he stays away from injury.
• Steven Fletcher (Wolves to Sunderland): Another veteran forward for the Black Cats. At the price of £7.0m he is hardly tempting - Mladen Petric could easily outperform him at cheaper price.
• Matthew Jarvis (Wolves to West Ham): His arrival complicates West Ham's midfield line-up and might deteriorate the whole midfield unit's fantasy value. His price of £6.0m represents a good bargain though, provided that he plays regularly.

FEATURED: Manchester City v Liverpool @ Anfield
After a big scare by Southampton last gameweek, Manchester City will continue their title defence with a tough visit to Anfield this Sunday.

The Citizens have lost Sergio Aguero (£11.3m) through injury, while David Silva (£10.0m) was mediocre in his last game against the Saints, having missed a penalty. Fortunately though, that was compensated with Carlos Tevez (£9.2m) heroics. He is definitely looking sharp and is very affordable in FPL. Strongly recommended.

Meanwhile, Liverpool have sufferred a big loss last week against West Brom, with Daniel Agger (£6.5m) being sent off for a last-man challenge. Big blow for the Reds as Jamie Carragher (£5.5m) is too old to keep up the pace, while  Sebastian Coates (£5.0m) still lacks the experience to cope with teams as strong as City.

City might have lost here terribly a year ago, but I believe things will turn around this time and the Reds will suffer two consecutive defeats in the opening stage of their season.

Prediction: MCI 2-1 LIV

TEAM FOCUS: Swansea
Fantasy managers will need to pay more attention to Swansea after their 5-0 victory against QPR last week. They will face promoters West Ham at Liberty Stadium this week as it represents a great opportunity for them to grab 6 points out of 6.

Michu (£6.8m) started his first Premier League game spectacularly, and could be the star again against West Ham. Consider him as the new Sigurdsson - cheap and super-productive. On the other hand, Danny Graham (£6.0m) was silent against QPR but could be the man this time - he is the first choice forward of the Swans and scored 12 goals last season after all.

No disrespect to West Ham but the Hammers are one class lower than the Welsh Barcelona in my opinion.

Prediction: SWA 3-1 WHM

PLAYER FOCUS: Hazard, Adebayor and Cazorla
One simply cannot ignore Eden Hazard (£9.6m) after his 5-assist gameweek 1 showdown. He is very very penetrative and though he will play Newcastle - a much better Premier League team - this week, I believe with his quality he can continue to deliver.

Meanwhile, with Emmanuel Adebayor's (£9.5m) permanent move to Tottenham being finalized, fantasy managers can expect him to lead the front line of Spurs and bang in lots of fantasy points. At £9.5m, he is one of the undervalued forwards in FPL.

I like the immediate influence of Santi Cazorla (£9.0m) at Arsenal. He has great vision and is not afraid to shoot from far range - both are important to beat big-men teams like Stoke City.

Mladen Petric (£6.1m) is one player that you should not forget about as well, but he's playing against Manchester United at Old Trafford this weekend - not a good time to bring him into your fantasy team in my opinion.

STATUS UPDATES

• Demba Ba (£7.5m):  Shin injury (75% playing).
• Rio Ferdinand (£6.0m): Groin injury (expected to back on 2 September).
• Fabricio Coloccini (£5.0m): Knock (75% playing).
• Jose Enrique (£6.0m): Knock (75% playing).
• Phil Jones (£6.0m): Back injury (expected  to back on 2 September).
• John Terry (£7.0m): Muscle injury (50% playing).
• Daniel Agger (£6.5m): Suspended until 2 September.
• Clint Dempsey (£9.5m): Lack of match fitness (expected to back on 1 September).
• Sergio Aguero (£11.3m): Knee injury (expected to back on 15 September).

GAMEWEEK 2 DREAM TEAM

Vorm

Vermaelen — Clyne — A Cole

Michu (VC) — Hazard — Cazorla — Yaya Toure

Graham — Adebayor (C) — Tevez

Subs: Given — Jenkinson — Kacaniklic — Barnett

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Sunday Aftermath: Aguero Injury Woes

The most vice-captained fantasy player, Sergio Aguero, ended up with only 1 point.

After such a fascinating Saturday matchday, Sunday games came with equal excitements as well. Here are some big scenes:

• Sergio Aguero (£11.5m) went injured with only 11 minutes of action against Southampton (1 point). Big, bad news for about 30% of fantasy managers as they will need to make a forced transfer following his injury. A wildcard may as well ready to be used for some of the managers.
• Also failing to deliver was David Silva (£10.0m), who missed a penalty in a terrible fashion. He scored nothing for this gameweek, which is definitely a big butthurt to his owners.
• Meanwhile, Aguero's teammate and compatriot Carlos Tevez (£9.0m) proved to be as pivotal as before at Manchester City. He scored the opener goal against the Saints and with Aguero injured, his starting spot is pretty much secured for the next few weeks.
• Samir Nasri (£8.5m) was the star performer with 12 fantasy points (which include 3 bonus points). He might as well lock a place in Mancini's starting XI with such performance.
• I am greatly impressed by Nigel Adkins - he brought in 2 substitutes who brought immediate goals. Almost beaten the Premier League Champions last year. Splendid. Rickie Lambert (£6.0m) did not start, which surprised me, but scored a goal nonetheless.
• On the other game we saw Eden Hazard (£9.5m) provided all 2 assists in Chelsea's victory over Wigan. It's Hazard 1-0 Mata (£9.5m) then.
• Branislav Ivanovic (£6.5m) got 15 points thanks to his opening goal, while Frank Lampard (£9.0m) scored from the spot - he is still an important player for the Blues.
• As for the late Saturday game, Andre Villas-Boas had a poor start as Demba Ba (£7.5m) and Hatem Ben Arfa (£7.0m) combined to send Tottenham Hotspur in misery.
• Jermaine Defoe (£7.5m) scored only goal for the visitors though, and that is an encouraging sign to own him.

FPLZ 2012/13 Season Preview: Post-Updates

Lucas Leiva may uplift Liverpool players' fantasy scoring potential to the next level.

This post serves as a complement to our FPLZ 2012/13 Season Preview Series and updates the latest fantasy relevant news to you until the season starts.

Arsenal
Santi Cazorla (£9.0m) joins the Gunners from Malaga CF. Extraordinary move by Arsene Wenger whereby he spent as much as £16.5m on a senior player. Cazorla should become a decent fantasy player, and is expected to hurt Mikel Arteta's (£8.0m) fantasy value a lot by stealing his set pieces.

On the other hand, Robin Van Persie's (£13.0m) move to Manchester United is a  done deal as the Red Devils offerred £24m for the Dutch forward. Olivier Giroud (£9.0m) and Lukas Podolski (£8.5m) should become great fantasy stocks then.

Thomas Vermaelen (£7.0m) meanwhile has been promoted as the Gunners' new captain. Hopefully no more captain curse for them.

Liverpool
So Joe Allen (£5.5m) says goodbye to Liberty Stadium and goes to Anfield. A very interesting move which can make the young English a big fantasy hit, thanks to his fantasy price of £5.5m, though he is expected to play a little deeper - somewhere between Lucas Leiva and the skipper Steven Gerrard.

Also going to Anfield is Moroccan winger Oussama Assaidi from Dutch side Heerenveen. He is still not listed in FPL so we will need to wait and see before we can evaluate on his value.

Manchester City
Mancini finally got his first player this summer in the name of Jack Rodwell (£5.0m). Not much of fantasy relevance though, as Rodwell plays deep in the midfield - a very unpopular position in fantasy world.

Interestingly, it seems like Carlos Tevez (£9.0m) has gained back Mancini's trust and has now become the manager's primary choice upfront. With his calibre, his fantasy valuation of £9.0m is a steal.

Manchester United
As Van Persie goes to Old Trafford, things become very unsettled at Manchester United. Will RVP and Wayne Rooney (£12.0m) complement each other well and produce even better fantasy points or hurt each other fantasy potential instead? One thing for sure is that Danny Welbeck (£8.5m) and Javi Hernandez (£8.0m) are useless in fantasy terms now, unless either of the two aforementioned big guns suffer an injury. Shinji Kagawa's (£8.0m) value hurts as well with more bench time to be expected.

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